Marin County pays $1.9 million in Taser settlement

Marin County will pay a 66-year-old West Marin man $1.9 million to settle a 2009 case in which a deputy sheriff jolted him repeatedly with a Taser stun gun.

Marin County Counsel Patrick Faulkner emerged from a closed session with the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday and issued a statement announcing the payment to Peter McFarland of Woodacre.

"The agreement brings to a close the lawsuit brought against the county of Marin and the Marin County Sheriff's Office for the alleged use of excessive force by deputies who used a Taser to help effect the arrest of Peter McFarland in June of 2009," the statement said.

"The incident was not consistent with department policy," the statement added, in an unusual comment about liability.

San Francisco attorney Ethan Balogh, who along with attorney John Scott represented McFarland, said, "Mr. McFarland and his wife, Pearl, are pleased to have reached an amicable settlement with the county and to put these events behind them and move forward with their lives." McFarland couldn't be reached for comment.

Faulkner said settlement of the case was less expensive for the county than taking it to trial, especially since the result of a trial would be uncertain at best. A videotape of the McFarland incident was played repeatedly on television news programs last year.

Faulkner noted the county is self-insured for up to $1 million, minus expenses for litigation costs. The county's insurance carrier will pick up about $900,000 of the tab, he said.

Officials noted that Taser policies are continually changing as the law evolves through court cases, and Marin has tightened its rules and procedures over time.

"Since we implemented the Tasers and non-lethal weapons, we've revised our policy probably five or six times," Sheriff Robert Doyle said, adding that more restrictive rules cut Taser use 64 percent last year. Each time a Marin deputy uses a Taser, the event is filmed by a camera in the Taser unit, he noted.

A Taser is a stun gun that delivers electric shocks when fired. The sheriff's office began issuing the weapons in November 2008 and has about 100 devices that deputies carry while on patrol.

Deputies received around eight hours of training when the department first issued the stun guns and each year complete four hours of refresher training, Doyle said.

McFarland, who was 64 when the Taser incident occurred, fell outside his Carson Road home after attending a fundraiser with his wife, Pearl, on June 29, 2009, according to a lawsuit filed last year in U.S. District Court in San Francisco. Pearl McFarland called authorities just before midnight to request help.

At some point in the wee hours of June 30, McFarland, who had been drinking, made a reference to shooting himself in the head, and paramedics contacted the sheriff's office, according to television news reports last year.

Deputies then entered the home and fired a Taser at McFarland when he refused to go to the hospital. He was arrested for resisting arrest, but that charge was later dismissed. McFarland's legal team obtained a video of the incident — filmed by a camera attached to the Taser — from Marin County prosecutors.

The lawsuit also named two responding deputies, Erin Mittenthal and Justin Zebb, as defendants and alleged that Zebb fired his Taser four times, including once after McFarland was already handcuffed. Mittenthal no longer works for the sheriff's office, although her decision to leave was unrelated to the incident, Doyle said. Zebb remains with the department and was not disciplined, he added.

Supervisor Steve Kinsey, pressed for a comment, said, "This is an unfortunate situation for everyone involved. While the board continues to believe that Tasers are an effective law enforcement tool that will save lives "... they need to be used with the stringent policies our sheriff has established."